Dominican Republic🇩🇴 | hikesCachote Cloud Forest TrailCommunity guides, trogon calls, tree ferns, mountain cabins | things to do and best time to go

Cachote Cloud Forest Trail gives backpackers something the coast cannot: cold-ish mornings, wet forest and birds found nowhere else on earth. The star is the Hispaniolan trogon, called barrancolí locally, and the paths here are among the better places in the country to hear and often spot it, along with other endemics that make birders quietly lose their composure.The second reason is the people. The walks are run by the community of Cachote, so your guide grew up on these slopes, knows which tree the parrots favor and can explain the coffee and fruit plots you pass. Money for the guide and cabin stays goes straight to village families, which is a better deal than most souvenir stalls.Third, the distances are flexible. A short loop fits a morning, while a longer outing with a slow pace and … read more 👉

Cachote Cloud Forest Trail gives backpackers something the coast cannot: cold-ish mornings, wet forest and birds found nowhere else on earth. The star is the Hispaniolan trogon, called barrancolí locally, and the paths here are among the better places in the country to hear and often spot it, along with other endemics that make birders quietly lose their composure.The second reason is the people. The walks are run by the community of Cachote, so your guide grew up on these slopes, knows which tree the parrots favor and can explain the coffee and fruit plots you pass. Money for the guide and cabin stays goes straight to village families, which is a better deal than most souvenir stalls.Third, the distances are flexible. A short loop fits a morning, while a longer outing with a slow pace and many stops fills a day. Stay a night in one of the simple village cabins and the dawn bird chorus becomes your alarm clock, no phone needed. It slots well between the southwest’s dry lowlands and the lakes and desert scrub nearby.